Despite a massive multi-agency search involving helicopters, drones, sniffer dogs and specialized mountain rescue teams, 23-year-old MBA student Babita Pandey from Nainital remains missing since May 29 after disappearing from Goi Base Camp during a trek to Dayara Bugyal in Uttarkashi.
A woman from Ramnagar in Uttarakhand’s Nainital district, identified as 23-year-old MBA student Babita Pandey, has remained missing since the night of May 29 after she disappeared from Goi Base Camp during a trek to Dayara Bugyal in Uttarkashi district. Despite an intensive search and rescue operation that has continued for several days, authorities have not found any trace of her so far.
A massive search operation was launched after Babita went missing under mysterious circumstances during the trek. Police registered a case and detained her two travel companions for questioning following a complaint filed by her family.
According to the police, Babita had travelled to Uttarkashi with her two friends, Harmanpal Singh of Udham Singh Nagar district and Harmanpreet Singh of Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur district. After visiting Harsil, Gangotri and nearby tourist destinations, the three stayed in Raithal village on May 28. CCTV footage last captured Babita with her friends in Raithal village.
On May 29, the trio began their trek from Raithal to Dayara Bugyal and spent the night at Goi Base Camp. Police said Babita went missing from the campsite around midnight.
During the initial phase of the operation, the police administration sought assistance from the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). A 150-member search team comprising personnel from the Army, ITBP, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), police, forest department and disaster management authorities was deployed after the incident was reported on May 30. However, the Army and ITBP teams have now been withdrawn from the operation.
The district administration has since revised its strategy and deployed a specialized team from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) to continue the search. Officials said the NIM team is specially trained for high-altitude Himalayan search and rescue operations and has extensive experience in difficult terrain. Multiple teams are currently carrying out intensive searches across the area.
Despite extensive manual searches, sniffer dog deployments and drone surveillance across a five-kilometre radius covering dense forests, steep slopes, trekking routes and caves, investigators have not found any clues regarding Babita’s whereabouts. Search operations are now focusing on a lake near the Goi campsite, where a six-member SDRF diving team equipped with modern equipment has been deployed.
The administration also launched an aerial search operation on Sunday with the help of a helicopter to scan Dayara Bugyal and nearby inaccessible regions for any possible clues. Authorities continue to investigate all possible angles and assess Babita’s potential location.
Uttarkashi Superintendent of Police Kamlesh Upadhyay said police registered a case under Section 140(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and detained Babita’s two companions for questioning. Investigators are examining the possibility of a personal dispute or any other suspicious activity. Trekking guides and individuals associated with the trekking agency are also being questioned.
Meanwhile, Uttarkashi District Tourism Officer KK Joshi said inquiries revealed that no valid digital permits had been issued for Babita or her companions on the official tourism portal, ‘Explore Uttarkashi’.
The investigation found that the trekking agency allegedly bypassed government revenue regulations and the daily cap of 150 trekkers by pasting the names of Babita and her friends onto an expired physical permit.
Officials said scanning the QR code on the permit retrieved details of previous trekkers, indicating that a forged permit had been used. According to Joshi, the forgery initially delayed efforts to identify the trekkers and the agency responsible for handling them.
Following the findings, authorities suspended the registration of the Raithal-based trekking agency, Pro Mountain, with immediate effect. The tourism department said the agency sent the group on the trek using a forged permit and suspended its registration on charges of fraud.
